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Welcome to mhcameo, the Mount Holyoke College Art Museum blog. Here we post about unique happenings, including behind-the-scenes looks at our exhibitions, close examinations of objects from the collection, and art-related chats with alumnae, faculty, and students. Sign-up below for blog alerts and take a regular peek at mhcameo!

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As one of her final projects before heading off to pursue a Master’s degree in art history, 2017-2018 Art Museum Advisory Board Curatorial Fellow Katia Kiefaber '17 reflects on an unusual book she discovered in an unexplored box in Museum storage. Bequested to MHCAM in 1991 as part of a large collection from alumna Helene Brosseau Black (Class of 1931), Marcel Vertès Dames Seules sheds light on queer relationships between women in early 20th-century Paris…but not as much as our author would have liked.

To Live Without the Mask of the Past: A Conversation with Curlee Raven Holton

Hannah Blunt

Curlee Raven Holton is a painter and printmaker whose work addresses significant personal, political, and cultural events. On view at MHCAM from July 17–December 16, 2018, Holton's print portfolio Othello Re-imagined in Sepia explores the humanity and emotional complexity of William Shakespeare’s tragic character. Associate Curator Hannah W. Blunt spoke with Holton about the research and inspiration behind the project, and how it connects to his larger creative journey—a journey about restoring humanity, showing our vulnerabilities, and removing our deceptive masks.

Curatorial Intern Juliana Cordero ’18 is a book lover. Her affinity for books is so strong, in fact, that she hopes to pursue a career as a book conservator. Here, she shares her favorite books from a collection of nearly 70 artists’ books by women recently gifted to MHCAM by Marjorie (Jerry) Cohn ’60. Cohn, a long-time conservator and curator at the Fogg Museum, amassed this wondrous collection over 25 years. Feminist themes abound in these books, through comedy, tragedy, and the commonplace. Read on…Cordero’s picks are laugh-out-loud funny!

Video recording of a lecture by Dr. Alvia J. Wardlaw, Professor of Art History and Director/Curator of the University Museum, Texas Southern University

On December 7, the Museum hosted a poetry reading and open mic in the Harriet L. and Paul M. Weissman Gallery. Co-sponsored by the Department of English, the event saw marvelous readings by students and faculty alike. Several students presented poems and prose written in response to exhibitions and works of art on view at MHCAM. Thank you to Becca Mullen ‘18, Ben Sambrook ‘18, Anisha Pai ‘19, and Henna Joshi ‘18 for sharing those poems with us for the first blog post of 2018. Happy reading!